Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

• Matthew 16:18-19

He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. He will bring you a message through which you and all your household will be saved.’  “As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning. Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ So if God gave them the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could stand in God’s way?”

• Acts 11:13-17

When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.

• Acts 16:15

“ ‘We have not a single command in the Scriptures that infants are to be baptized, or that the apostles practised it, therefore we confess with good sense that infant baptism is nothing but human invention and notion, a perversion of the ordinances of Christ, a manifold abomination standing in the holy place where it ought not to stand.’ (Foundations of Christian Doctrine 1.E) ”

• Tony Lane, A Concise History of Christian Thought

Menno Simons (1496-1561) was a Catholic priest who was excommunicated.  He became a church leader in the Anabaptist faith, founding the Mennonites.  He was from Friesland in northern Holland.  His name in Frisian texts might appear translated as Minne, son of Simens.

The subject of infant baptism has been one of the earliest dividing points in Christianity.  The Catholic church baptized infants and the Reformation held to that practice.  I was the godfather of one of my nephews.  My wife told me to do whatever the Catholic priest said to do.  She did not say that the godfather is the one who presents the child for baptism.  I held that little one through the entire ceremony.  So, the denominations that came from the initial reformation held to this practice of infant baptism.  Then the Baptists and Anabaptists split on this issue.

The Scriptures above come up when you look for Scripture that could support infant baptism.  First, in Matthew, it talks about binding things on earth as being bound in Heaven.  In infant baptism, the parents are charged with bringing up the child in the proper way.  Some parents choose to call this a dedication, but as a baptism, it symbolically represents the stain of original sin being washed away.  The remaining texts above, only a couple given, are when entire households were baptized.  When the text says “entire”, you would assume children also.  Some sources use the times in which an infant died and would be reunited in Heaven with his family as a reason for this infant baptism.

But Menno Simons has a point also.  He comes off as harsh not allowing any form of baptism at birth, but his point is that baptism is for the remission of sins, and the person being baptized should understand that.

But rather than having two hard lines that divide the church, there should be middle ground.  Some churches insist that a water baptism is required for salvation.  I totally disagree in that salvation is by Grace through faith, and no works must be added.  What is missed in this poor interpretation of Scripture is that we are baptized by the Holy Spirit upon acceptance of Jesus as our Savior.

The water baptism can be at any time, and it is not effective toward salvation unless the heart is right.  When the heart is right with God, the baptism by the Holy Spirit is a part of accepting Jesus.  Jesus may enter our control center (the heart), but the Holy Spirit gives us guidance.  And to not sound like the Pentecostals among us, I am not referring to speaking in tongues, etc. as a means of proof of the Holy Spirit baptism.  The Holy Spirit helps us to understand what sin must be gone from our lives.  The Holy Spirit helps us understand what the Scriptures are really saying – the overpowering thing in my acceptance of Jesus was this understanding, and more and more is revealed as I study more.

So, I am saying that I see both sides, but both sides need to keep baptism as a Sacrament and a symbol of the cleansing of us.  It cannot be part of salvation.  Making it a requirement to join a church is up to that ruling body.

But to call infant baptism a “manifold abomination” is a bit too much.

If you like these Tuesday morning essays about philosophy and other “heavy topics,” but you think you missed a few, you can use this LINK. I have set up a page off the home page for links to these Tuesday morning posts. I will continue to modify the page as I add more.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.